MODULE 1

Santa Monica Institute of Technology

University Cabili Avenue, Iligan City
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Tel. No. 221-2678

DISCUSSION
LESSON 1: 21st CENTURY ASSESSMENT

INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES

At the end of this lesson, students should be able to:

A. Analyze the fundamental concepts and characteristics of 21st century assessment.

B. Use appropriate assessment tools and techniques as applied in instructional decision.
C. Relate learning outcomes and assessment.
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In order to thrive in this constantly changing and extremely challenging period, the
acquisition of 21st century skills is necessary. It is imperative that the educational system sees
that these skills are developed and honed before the learners graduate. It should be
integrated in the program of each discipline. More than just acquiring knowledge, its
application is important. To ensure that education has really done its role, ways to measure or
to assess the learning process are necessary. Thus, the assessment processes and tools must
be suited to the needs and requirements of the 21st century. In this chapter, the
characteristics of 21st century assessment, how it is used as one of the inputs in making
instructional decision, and outcome-based assessment will be discussed.
Inevitably the 21st century is here, demanding a lot of changes, development, and re-
engineering of systems in different fields for this generation to thrive. In the field of education,
most of the changes have focused on teaching and learning. Preparing and equipping the
teachers to cater to the needs of the 21st century learners are part of the adjustments being
done in the education system. Curricula are updated to address the needs of the community
in relation to the demands of the 21st century. This aspect of teaching and learning has been
given its share of focus, the various components/factors analyzed and updated to ensure
that students’ learning will be at par with the demands of the 21st century. Although a lot of
changes has been made on the different facets of education, there are some members of
the educational community calling for a corresponding development or change in
educational assessment. This belief, coupled with the traditional focus on teaching and
learning will produce a strong and emerging imperative to alter our long-held conceptions of
these three parts: teaching, learning, and assessment (Greenstein, 2012).
Twenty-first century skills must build on the core literacy and numeracy that all students
must master. Students need to think critically and creatively, communicate and collaborate
effectively, and work globally to be productive, accountable citizens and leaders. These skills
to be honed must be assessed, not just simply to get numerical results but more so, to take
the results of assessment as guide to take further action.
Educators need to focus on: what to teach; how to teach it; and how to assess it
(Greenstein, 2012; Schmoker, 2011).

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The Assessment and Teaching of 21 Century Skills project (act21s.org) has a core belief
st

that alignment of goals with learning and assessment is essential to policy and practice. They
emphasize the importance of balanced assessment systems that incorporate the 21st century
goals.

Watch:
 Assessing 21st Century Skills https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6qqWsHBeRfM
 Characteristics of 21 Century Assessment
st

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSIIK9bVyPI

This section focuses on the characteristics of 21st century assessment and the different
types of assessment. You are expected to integrate the concepts that will be discussed and
apply them in using appropriate assessment tools and techniques in making instructional
decisions; and finally, relate assessment to learning outcomes.

1.
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1.1 Responsive
Visible performance-based work (as a result of assessment) generates data that inform
curriculum and instruction. Teachers can adjust instructions, school leaders can consider
additional educational opportunities for students and policy makers can modify programs
and resources to cater to the present needs of the school community.
Processes for responding to assessments are thoughtfully developed, incorporating best
practices in feedback and formative assessment. Feedback is to be targeted to the goal
and outcome. Rather than just a single test grade, students are informed of progress toward
the attainment of goal. Self-reflection, peer feedback, and opportunities for revision will be a
natural outcome.

1.2 Flexible
Lesson design, curriculum, and assessment require flexibility, suppleness, and adaptability.
Assessments and responses may not be fitted to expected answers. Assessment need to be
adaptable to students’ settings. Rather than the identical approach that works in traditional
assessment, 21st century approaches are more versatile. These approaches best fit for the
demands of the learning environment at present since as students’ decisions, actions and
applications vary, the assessments and the system need to be flexible, too.

1.3 Integrated
Assessments are to be incorporated into day-to-day practice rather than as add-ons at
the end of instructions or during a single specified week of the school calendar.
Assessments are enriched by metacognition. Assessment is about stimulating thinking,
building on prior learning, constructing meaning, and thinking about one’s thinking. It offers
opportunities for students to consider their choices, identify alternative strategies, transfer
earlier learning, and represent knowledge through different means.

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1.4 Informative
The desired 21st century goals and objectives are clearly stated and explicit taught.
Students display their range of emerging knowledge and skills. Exemplars routinely guide
students toward achievement of targets.
Learning objectives, instructional strategies, assessment methods, and reporting processes
are clearly aligned. Complex learning takes time. Students have opportunities to build on
prior learning in a logical sequence. As students develop and build skills, i.e. learning and
innovation skills, information, communication and technology skills, and life and career skills;
the work gets progressively more rigorous.
Demonstration of 21st century skills are evident and support learning. Students show the
steps they go through and display their thought processes for peer and teacher review.

1.5 Multiple Methods

An assessment continuum that includes a spectrum of strategies is the norm. Students
demonstrate knowledge and skills through relevant tasks, projects, and performances.
Authentic and performance-based assessment is emphasized. There is recognition of and
appreciation for the processes and products of learning.

1.6 Communicated
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Communication of assessment data is clear and transparent for all stakeholders. Results
are routinely posted to a database along with standards-based commentary, both of which
must be available and comprehensible at all levels. Students receive routine feedback on
their progress, and parents are kept informed through access to visible progress reports and
assessment data.
The educational community recognizes achievement of students beyond the
standardized test scores. Large-scale measures, including all the results of traditional and
authentic assessments, include and report on 21st century skills.

1.7 Technical Sound

Adjustments and accommodations are made in the assessment process to meet the
student needs and fairness. Students demonstrate what they know and how they can apply
that knowledge in ways that are relevant and appropriate for them.
To be valid, the assessment must measure the stated objectives and 21st century skills with
legitimacy and integrity.
To be reliable, the assessment must be precise and technically sound so that users are
consistent in their administration and interpretation of data. They produce accurate
information for decision-making in all relevant circumstances.

1.8 Systemic
Twenty-first century assessment is part of a comprehensive and well-aligned assessment
system that is balances and inclusive of all students, constituents, and stakeholders and
designed to support improvement at all levels.

These eight characteristics of 21st century assessment, are essential guide for the
preparation of assessment activities by educators. It is necessary to refer to these
characteristics to ensure that the learners are being assessed towards the skills and demand
of the 21st century.

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LESSON 2: INSTRUCTIONAL DECISION IN ASSESSMENT

INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES

At the end of this chapter, students should be able to:
 Analyze the fundamental concepts and characteristics of 21st century assessment.
 Use appropriate assessment tools and techniques as applied in instructional decision.
 Relate learning outcomes and assessment.

The major objective of educational assessment is to have a holistic appraisal of a

learner, his/her environment and accomplishments.
The educational assessment process starts in analyzing the criterion together with the
teaching-learning environment. It is done to determine the effect of the environment to the
teaching-learning situation after which, the kind of evidence that are appropriate to use for
assessment of the individuals are set. This helps to determine the strengths, weaknesses, needs
and personality characteristics, skills and abilities of the learner (Bloom, 1970)
It is clear that educational assessment encompasses the total educational setting and
not limited to the teacher-student engagement. It is not merely based on a single aspect
such as taking a test, and checking it. In totality, the processes of measurement and
evaluation are subsumed in the educational assessment process.
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1. INSTRUCTIONAL DECISION IN ASSESSMENT

1.1 Decision-making at Different Phases of Teaching-Learning Process
Phase Decision(s) to be made Source(s) of information
 Content to cover during  Informal observation of
Before starting teaching following day, week, students during class
month, grading period,  Conversation with
and so on. students’ previous
 Abilities of students teachers
considering the cultural  Scholastic aptitude test
background, interests results
and skills of students in  Students’ past grades
planning the teaching and standardized test
activities. results
 Materials appropriate to  Knowledge of student’s
use with the students personal family
 Learning activities that circumstances
will engage both the
teacher and students as
the lesson is being
taught
 Learning targets that
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the teacher wants to
achieve as a result of
teaching
 Organization and
arrangement of
students in class in
consideration of the
lessons and activities.

 Students learning on  Observation of students

During Teaching what and how the during learning activities
lesson is presented  Students’ response to
 Improvement needed questions the teacher
to make the lesson work asked them
better  Observation of students
 What feedback to give interaction
each student about  Diagnosis of the types of
how well the student is errors the students
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learning made or erroneous

 Readiness of the thinking the students
students to move to the are using
next activity as planned  Look for alternative
in the learning ways to teach the
sequence materials
 Identify if there are
students who are not
participating and
acting appropriately
 How well students  Classroom tests,
After a Teaching Segment achieve the short and projects, observations
long term instructional  Interviews with students
targets  Standardized test results
 Strengths and  Observations of each
weaknesses to be given student’s classroom
as feedback to parents participation
or guardians of students  Review each student’s
 Grade to be given to homework results
each student for the  Review each student’s
lesson or unit, grading standardized
period or end of the achievement and
course scholastic aptitude test
 Effectiveness of results
teaching the lesson to  Review information
the students about a student’s
 Effectiveness of the personal family
curriculum and circumstances
materials used for the  Informal observation of
lesson how well the student
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has attained the
intended learning
targets
 Summaries of the class’
performance on the
important instructional
targets
 Summaries of the class’
performance on
selected questions on
standardized tests
 Summaries of how well
the students liked the
activities and lesson
materials
 Summaries of the class’
achievement on
classroom tests that
match the curriculum
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1.2 Assessment in Classroom Instruction

CATEGORY PURPOSE
1. Placement Assessment Measures entry behavior
2. Formative Assessment Monitors learning progress
3. Diagnostic Assessment Identifies causes of learning problems
4. Summative Assessment Measures end-of-course achievement
1.3 Types of Educational Decision
Kubiszyn and Borich (2002) classified the different educational decisions into eight (8)
categories. These types of decisions are described briefly below.
DECISION DESCRIPTION EXAMPLE
This decision is normally made by After a test was given by
Instructional individual classroom teacher, as the teacher, the result is not
necessary to meet the targets or so satisfactory thus the
objectives set during classroom teacher may decide to re-
engagement. Decisions are reached teach the lesson using a
according to the results of test different strategy so as to
administered to a class. improve the learning and
meet the objective/target
set for that particular lesson.

It is usually based on teacher-made A quarterly grade is based

Grading tests. Grades are assigned to the on the following: result of
students using assessment as one of the teacher-made test,
the factors. class participation, projects,
and attendance

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It is made to determine a student’s A teacher gave an essay
Diagnostic strengths and weaknesses and the test. The teacher noticed
reason or reasons. that the students were able
to write more than five
grammatically correct
sentences but the
coherence of the ideas
contained in the paragraph
is poor. So the result shows
that the students sill need
more help in understanding
the principles of writing a
good paragraph.

It involves accepting or rejecting the College or University

Selection examinee based on the results of Entrance Examination,
assessment, for admission or Choosing School
qualification to a program or school Representative for a
activity. The decisions are made not National Quiz Bee
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by classroom teachers but by

specialists such as guidance
counselors, administrators or the
selection committee.
It is made after a student has been A diagnostic test on English
Placement admitted to school. It involves the and Math were given to
process of identifying students who freshmen to determine who
needs remediation or may be among them may
recommended for enrichment encounter difficulty in these
program of the school. areas. Those who will get a
below-average scores will
be included in the
remediation program to
help the students cope with
the lessons in English and
Math.

It utilizes data to assist students inThe NCAE helps to identify

Guidance and making their personal choice for future
which career path the
Counseling career and help them know their students may pursue that
strengths and weaknesses by means matches his/her interests
of standardized tests. and skills, whether
academic, vocational or
On the other hand, teachers may use technical programs.
the results of social-metric tests to
identify who among the students are
popular or unpopular. Those who are
unpopular may be given help for
them to gain friends and become
more sociable.
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It is made not at the level of the The decision to implement
Program or teachers but on higher level such as the K-12 Curriculum in order
Curriculum division, regional or national level. to avoid mismatch among
Based on the result of assessment and graduates and the industry
evaluation, educational decisions and to be at par with the
may be reached: to continue, Curriculum implemented in
discontinue, revise or replace a the Philippines’ neighboring
curriculum or program being countries.
implemented.
It involves determining the implications To conduct a remediation
Administrative to resources including financial class, additional budget is
Policy consideration in order to improve the necessary for the logistics
student learning as a result of an (classroom, instructional
assessment. It may entail acquisition of materials, assessment
instructional materials, books, etc. To materials, etc) and also the
raise the level of students’ additional pay for the
performance in academic, or non- teachers that will handle
academic or both. the remedial
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2. OUTCOME-BASED ASSESSMENT

2.1 Student Learning Outcome

Student Learning Outcome is the totality of accumulated knowledge, skills, and
attitudes that students develop during a course study. And this serve as the basis for assessing
the extent of learning in an Outcome Based Education (OBE). Outcome Based Assessment
must be continuously done during the entire teaching learning both by the teachers and
students to ensure that the activities are aligned with the expected outcomes set for the
students by the teacher. Providing feedback including the results of assessment is important
to identify the next steps (to be done by the teacher and student) toward the realization of
the intended learning outcome.

2.2 Sources of Student Expected Learning Outcome

Following are the factors that need to be considered in crafting the student expected
learning outcomes:
1. Mission statement of the school.
2. Mandated policies on competencies and standards issued by government education
agencies.
3. Competencies expected by different professions, business and industry.
4. Development plan and goals as well as the current thrusts of both the national and local
governments.
5. Current global trends and developments so that graduates can complete globally.
6. General 21st century skills focusing on the following:
 Oral and written communication
 Quantitative reasoning ability together with scientific methodology
 Analyzing, synthesizing and developing creative solutions.
 Use of technology
 Information literacy

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2.3 Characteristics of Good Learning Outcome
It is important to define outcomes as clearly and explicitly as possible. Good learning
outcomes give emphasis to the application and integration of the knowledge and skills
acquired in a particular unit of instruction (e.g. activity, course program, etc.), and emerge
from a process of reflection on the essential contents of the activity, course, program, etc.
1. Very specific, and use verbs (that makes expectations clear). By being very specific, it
informs students of the standards by which they will be assessed, and ensures that student
and instructor goals in the course are aligned.
2. Focus on the learner: rather than explaining what the instructor will do in the course,
good learning outcomes describe knowledge or skills that the student will employ, and
help the learner understand why that knowledge and those skills are useful and valuable
to their personal, professional, and academic future.
3. Are realistic: all passing students should be able to demonstrate the knowledge or skill
described by the learning outcome at the conclusion of the course. In this way, learning
outcomes establish standards for the course.
4. Focus on the application and integration of acquired knowledge and skills: good
learning outcomes reflect and indicate the ways in which the described knowledge and
skills may be used by the learner now and in the future.
5. Good learning outcomes prepare students for assessment and help them feel engaged
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in and empowered by the assessment and evaluation process.

6. Offer a timeline for completion of the desired learning.

LESSON 3: TYPES OF ASSESSMENT

INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES

At the end of this modules, you should be able to;
 Distinguish the different types of assessment,
 Relate the different types of assessment to learning outcomes.

In what ways do our students achieve more learning outcomes? What are the
ways with which we could measure students’ achievements? Assessment of student learning
requires the use of a variety of techniques for measuring outcomes which plays a significant
role in effective teaching and learning processes. In the previous module, an overview of the
different 21st century assessment characteristics, instructional decision, and outcome-based
assessment were discussed. Assessment shall be used primarily as quality assurance to track
student progress to the attainment of standards, promote self-reflection, and personal
accountability for one’s learning, and provide a basis for the profiling of student program.
(DepEd No. 73, s. 2012).
This module 3 presents various techniques and procedures of assessing student
learning outcomes which help the teachers in making instructional, curricular or
administrative decisions.

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1. Traditional and Authentic Assessment
TRADITIONAL ASSESSMENTS
- are indirect and inauthentic measure of students learning outcomes. This kind of assessment
is standardized and for that reason, they are one-shot, speed-based, and norm-referenced
(Bailey, 1998).
- often focus on learner’s ability of memorization and recall, which are lower level of
cognition skills (Smaldino, 2000).
Examples: Paper-and-pencil tests and quizzes

AUTHENTIC ASSESSMENT
- focuses on the analytical and creative thinking skills, students to work cooperatively and
collaboratively and performance skills (process and product) that reflect student learning,
student achievement, and student attitudes of relevant activities.
- when it measures performances or products which have realistic meaning that can be
attributed to the success in school.
The commonly reported dimensions of authenticity are grouped into three broad
categories (Frey, 2012).
A. The Context of the Assessment
 Realistic activity or context
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 The task is performance-based

 The task is cognitively complex
B. The Role of the Student
 A defense of the answer or product is required
 The assessment is formative
 Students collaborate with each other or with the teacher
C. The Scoring
 The scoring criteria are known or student-developed
 Multiple indicators or portfolios are used for scoring
 The performance expectation is mastery
Wiggins (1989) argues that teachers should “test those capacities and habits we think
are essential and test them in context. Make them replicate within reason, the challenges at
the heart of each discipline.” Authentic assessment has four basic characteristics:
1. The task should be representative of performance in the field.
2. Attention should be paid to teaching and learning the criteria for assessment.
3. Self-assessment should play a great role.
4. When possible, students should present their work publicly and defend it.

In general, below are some of the best uses of authentic assessment (Mueller, 2010):
1. Authentic assessments are direct measures.
e.g. Conducting a science experiment - hypothesis testing, developing feasibility study,
calculating savings.
2. Authentic assessments capture constructive nature of learning.
3. Authentic assessments integrate teaching, learning and assessment.
4. Authentic assessments provide multiple paths to demonstration.

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The table summarizes the attributes of traditional from authentic (performance) assessment.
Attributes of Traditional and Performance Assessments
Attribute Traditional Assessment Performance Assessment
Assessment Activity Selecting a response Performing a task
Nature of activity Contrived activity Activity emulates real life
Cognitive Level Knowledge/comprehension Application/analysis/synthesis
Development of Solution Teacher-structured Student-structured
Objectivity of Scoring Easily achieved Difficult to achieve
Evidence of Mastery Indirect evidence Direct evidence
Liskin-Gasparo (1997), Mueller (2008) & Wren (2009)

2. Formative Evaluation and Summative Evaluation

Assessment for Learning pertains to the use of to determine
and improve students’ learning outcomes. On the other hand, Assessment of Learning uses
which provides evidence of students’ level of achievement in relation
to curricular learning outcomes.
Formative assessment can be defined more specifically as, “All those activities
undertaken by teachers, and by their students in assessing themselves, which provide
information to be used as feedback to modify the teaching and learning activities in which
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they are engaged” (Black & William, 1998).

Formative assessment occurs at three (3) points of instruction: (1) during instruction;
(2) between lessons; and (3) between units.
Characteristics of Formative and Summative Assessments
Characteristics Formative Summative
Purpose To provide ongoing feedback To document student
and adjustment to instruction learning at the end of an
instructional segment.
When Conducted During instruction and after After instruction
instruction
Student Involvement Encouraged Discouraged
Student Motivation Intrinsic, mastery-oriented Extrinsic, performance-
oriented
Teacher Role To provide immediate, specific To measure student
feedback and instructional achievement and give
correctiveness grades
Learning Emphasized Deep understanding, Knowledge and
application, and reasoning Comprehension
Level of Specificity Highly specific and individual General and group
oriented
Structure Flexible, adaptable Rigid, highly structured
Techniques Informal Formal
Impact on Learning Strong, positive, long-lasting Weak and fleeting
Norm and Criterion-Referenced Assessment
Norm-referenced assessment gives us information on what the student can perform by
comparing to another student. It describes student performance in the class by comparing to
others. Teachers can actually rank the achievement of their students; as a result, there is a
limited percentage of competition for those who are high scorers. Criterion-referenced
assessment described the performance of the students without reference to the

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performance of others which uses preset criteria or predefined and absolute standards or
outcomes. Usually, it describes student’s mastery of the course content, thus, there is no
competition for a limited percentage for a high score.
Both methods are very useful in assessing learning outcomes. The first tells how an
individual performance compares with that of others, the record tells the specific
performance in terms of what an individual can do without reference to performance of
others.

Summary Comparison of Two Basic Approaches to Achievement

Norm-Referenced Criterion-Referenced
Principal Use Survery Testing Mastery Testing
Major Emphasis Measures individual difference in Describes tasks students
achievement can perform.
Interpretation of Compares performance to that of Compares performance to
Results other individual a clearly specified
achievement domain.
Content of Typically covers a broad area of Typically focuses on a
Courage achievement limited set of learning tasks,
Nature of Test Plan Table of specifications is commonly Detailed domain
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used specifications are favored.

Item Selection Items are selected that provide Includes all times needed
Procedures maximum discrimination among adequately to describe
individuals (to attain a reliable performance. No attempt is
ranking). Easy items are typically made to alter item difficulty
eliminated from the test. or to eliminate easy items to
increase the spread of
scores.
Performance Level of performance is determined Level of performance is
Standards by relative position in some known commonly determined by
group (ranks fifth in a group of 20) absolute standards
(demonstrates mastery by
defining 90 percent of
technical terms).

3. Contextualized and Decontextualized Assessment

Contextualized assessment - the focus is on the students’ construction of
functioning knowledge ad the students’ performance in application of knowledge in the real
work context of the discipline area. Assessment tasks reflect the goal of learning. It uses
performance-based tasks which are authentic in nature.

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According to Biggs (2011), Decontextualized assessment includes written exams and
term papers, which are suitable for assessing declarative knowledge, and do not necessarily
have a direct connection to a real-life context. It focuses on and/ore
in artificial situations detached from the real work context.
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4. Analytic and Holistic Assessment

Analytic assessment refers to specific approach in the assessment of learning
outcomes. In this procedure, students are given feedback on how well they are doing on
each important aspect of specific task expected from them. Assessment then is made
specific based on the importance of the performance. With this, assessment shouldn’t be
undertaken in part but must address the whole performance.
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Holistic assessment refers to a global approach in the assessment of a student-learning
outcome. Sadler (2009) pointed out that in holistic assessment, the teacher or the assessor has
to develop complex mental responses to a student’s work and in evaluating the student’s
work, the assessor provides a grade and supports it with a valid justification for assigning the
grade.
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EXAMPLES:

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HOLISTIC RUBRIC EXAMPLE
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 Assessment of Learning 2 Book, Ronan M. Cajigal, MA.Ed. & Maria Leflor D. Mantuano,
MA.Ed. Code: ISBN 978-971-9656-03-6

“There is no substitute for hard work” :)

- Thomas Edison -

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